1) Final Fantasy V (3 points) I wasn't going to give it three points again but the other possible choices are already very loved around here and they didn't need even more points so I didn't really have a choice. It offers one of the best representations of the job system thanks to how well balanced the jobs are and how it encourages to switch between them thanks to a number of simple but intelligent design decisions. This fact coupled with an excellent pacing and a moderate length makes this game one of the most replayable games in its genre by making each playthrough different by allowing the player to try lots of different combinations equally usable. Thanks to this balance the game offers itself well to challenges like the annual FFV Four Job Fiesta event, which I recommend trying as it makes the player value the strengths of the jobs used, observe better the boss patterns and their weaknesses and have a better understanding of the game mechanics, increasing the appreciation of the game in the process.
Even if I feel the battle and growth systems are the stars of the game, the story is serviceable and it has its series of funny moments thanks to the smart GBA version script. The main villain isn't anything special but when you hear his theme you'll know that things are going to get serious and everyone should remember GILGAMESH and his theme. Talking about the music, even if its soundtrack isn't mentioned the most when people talk about their favorite music in the series, I feel like it has a nice selection of gems that I enjoy immensely like Decisive Battle or that I can't feel but getting excited when I hear them. This well rounded mix of elements makes Final Fantasy V a game that anyone interested in the genre should try at least once.
2)
Chrono Trigger I'll always remember Chrono Trigger as the game that introduced me to JRPGs and I started to love this genre thanks to it, so I'm grateful for that. There are several aspects that makes it perfect for a first exposure to this type of game like the moderate difficulty, the charm of the world, enemy design and characters and a perfectly paced story like only the greatest games know how to do. Despite being great for novices it's also a wonderful experience for veterans for the same reasons so it's a game everyone can enjoy. Another reason to play this game is the uniqueness of the battle system thanks to mixing position based attacks, Active Time Battle and a vast number of combo techs in one neat package. I probably wouldn't be exaggerating if I said that it is one of the better-rounded games ever, so everyone that hasn't played this yet should already start thinking about doing it.
3)
Xenoblade Chronicles The greatness of this game comes from its world: the unique setting, the vast and beautiful areas are something that draw the players to explore and together with the amazing music trap them in a pretty and inspiring world. Each area offers something new and when you wonder if the next place could be better than the last it surprises in a different way, leaving good memories from almost every area. The quests can be a bit repetitive but they're the perfect excuse to get lost in each area encouraging one to explore every inch in them, and if that wasn't enough the game offers experience just by discovering new areas.
The story is interesting and the plot twists go in crescendo as the player nears the ending. The cast is very likeable and each one has differing roles in battle that makes experimentation with each of them mandatory to enjoy the battle system at its fullest and discovering how some previously neglected characters can be as good as the others. The soundtrack is another outstanding aspect of this game and brings consolidated composers to do their best like Mitsuda and Shimomura and very pleasant surprises for me like the group ACE+, and thanks to them this game leaves us with a few of my favorite battle themes.
4)
Grandia I played this game approximately a year ago for the first time and it quickly became one of my favorite RPGs. It's just one of these games that is full of charm and the best about it was how it transmitted a great sense of adventure, it's main theme, by making you discover new lands and learn about them at the same time as the protagonist, who grows as the plot keeps unfolding. I wasn't too keen on having the typical teenager as the main character and with a little girl as his sidekick to boot, but Grandia manages leave a good impression about them. The tonal shifts in this game are masterful and the plot knows when it can be dark without letting the charm of the characters and locales disappear. As if that wasn't enough, this game offers one of the best battle systems in the genre being much more dynamic than usual thanks to having the characters move around the battlefield and letting the moves manipulate the turn gauge by canceling attacks. It's a bit rough compared the sequels, but being the first game to have that battle system needs recognition.
5)
Demon's Souls I approached this game with caution because I thought that the appeal of it was that it was difficult. Thankfully, it was just one aspect of the game that enhances the real Demon's Souls experience. The way you get better with each death and the sense of accomplishment after opening a new shortcut can't happen without that sometimes more, sometimes less fair amount of challenge, but it's in no way the most important aspect of the game and not the only reason why this game is so good. The world design was superb and the general layout of the maps are more of the reasons why I kept playing until the end, together with the combat mechanics. As I liked more the exploration side of this game I wasn't particularly in love with the bosses but I recognize that they're well designed, iconic and help the player to get good thanks to the design of the fights. Another aspect of this game that I loved was its replayability as you can approach the situations that this game throws at you in multiple ways: melee, ranged attacks, magic, etc. giving it a lot of longevity, which is something I appreciate a lot. About the soundtrack, I loved the couple of vocal tracks it has as they give a sense about the chaotic status of that world.
6)
Persona 4 Even if this game has a pretty good balance among its elements I feel like the part that shines above the others in this game, like all the other games in the series, is the main cast. The way they interact between them, how you learn their fears, how they overcome their problems and build their friendship is pure gold. They are the thread that strengthens the main plot and motivate to keep playing and love this game. Even if the story part of the game can be a bit dense, Persona 4 manages to keep the player's attention. One way it's done is by using the Social Link system, as it's strangely addicting as you progress through the social links and you learn about the secondary characters and it strengthens your performance in the battle side of the game. The calendar system is a neat concept and I'd say it's one of the main reasons why this game or Persona 3 must be played, just to experience a different way of progression in a game by somehow implementing well dating sim elements in a RPG and not become an embarrassment (apart from a couple of cutscenes). As always, I must mention the music and how it gives the perfect tone for the game. The main singer is perfect for this and the quality of the music is very consistent and more often than not the songs get stuck in your head (Heartbeat, Heartbreak ♫

, showing us Meguro's talent.
7)
Golden Sun: The Lost Age The reason why I love the Golden Sun series is the ability to solve puzzles outside of battle with the skills the characters know. It's really interesting to not have the enemies as the only obstacles in dungeons most of the time. I know there are puzzles in other games but this one has them at the center of the dungeon exploration and it's essential to the experience this game tries to transmit. Another unique aspect is its battle system based around the Djinn. I have a weakness for them and I like the strategy they bring to battle by choosing between better stats or damage, and as the majority of them are optional, trying to get all of them becomes an interesting objective by itself. That also means that the optional content is very rewarding with a couple of exceptions. A musical aspect that I found interesting about it was the use of the flute in many of its themes. It isn't something that is heard too often and it gives a distinct feeling to these games.
The reason I chose The Lost Age over the other games in the series is because it has less pointless talk (filler) than the others, it's less linear, has better exploration, more variety in the dungeons and better puzzles. Overall, it's a much more well-rounded game but obviously it's just better to play the first and this one back to back and use the transfer option.
8)
Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones I was going to give my two points to Awakening but at the last moment I thought of this game as the better option if someone absolutely can only play one game in the series as it has a tighter pace more reminiscent of traditional Fire Emblems and some newbie-friendly features like a limited number of random battles in the world map. Without talking specifics about this game, the permadeath feature was a really memorable mechanic even though when I played this for the first time my challenge-averse nature manifested and I started to think that it was going to be one of those unnecessarily frustrating features but thankfully I was very wrong. It creates a constant feeling of tension that makes the player act even more tactically enhancing the experience at the same time. It also allows for interesting challenges like no resetting when someone dies and makes the player care about the characters more than if they were only cannon fodder. But not everything about Fire Emblem is permadeath here or permadeath there, the great quantity of different characters, the nice battle animations in the case of the GBA entries and the more than usual satisfying critical hits are essential to make Fire Emblem what it is.
9)
Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen I don't know why, but this is the classic Dragon Quest that has drawn my attention the most. The story is pretty simple, as is the battle system but that's what this series is all about, and that's how I like it. The division of the game in chapters is an interesting concept because it lets you try all the other characters before sticking with the protagonist and the other members of the final party. In the end, I think this game is a good example of what Dragon Quest has to offer even if it doesn't have an Alltrades Abbey.
10)
Pokémon Black/White Edition 2 The Pokémon games are a different beast on its own and I feel like I must recommend one in my essential list, not only because I like them but also because how unique they are compared to a lot of story-focused JRPGs. Like Dragon Quest, the beauty here is in its simplicity, adding to that the variety in "party members". However, the real defining features are the multiplayer and metagame components which can absorb absurd amounts of time if you get trapped in all the breeding and team building stuff. The amount of combinations of monsters and moves transforms something simple at its core into something very complex. I chose BW2 because it's the latest game that offers an extensive single player postgame, it has a lot of variety in what pokémon that can be caught and an experience system that favors experimentation without making the game too easy.
Honorable Mentions:
11)
Final Fantasy IX If someone asks me about the game that represents better what a Final Fantasy game should be I'd surely answer with this one. Unfortunately for it, FFV took the top spot in this list because more people know about how good this game is and there isn't a need to constantly remember them about its quality. Maybe the battles are a bit in the slow side, but I feel confident in saying that all is forgiven when all the other aspects are treated with so much love and the result is something with so much quality.
12)
Tales of the Abyss It's the only Tales of game I've completed and I hope the rest are at least as entertaining as this one. The battle system was very fun and I liked certain characters even if others were insufferable. It made me replay it again shortly after beating it, so I think that talks more about how good it is than words.
13)
Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions It's a SPRG with Final Fantasy elements so it looked perfect to be my introduction to that subgenre. Well, that wasn't the case as that place was taken by its sequels, but after playing this not too long ago I have to recognize its merits. The story is typical Matsuno with all the political drama and that's what makes this game have an honorable mention over the other Tactics games even if I like all of them. Another good thing was seeing some of your characters becoming broken mass murderers. It felt very rewarding when other times the enemies were the ones that destroyed you.
14)
Persona 2: Eternal Punishment While Persona 4 represents new Persona I feel like I had to mention one of the older ones. The general structure is more similar to regular role games but the focus on the characters has the same quality in all the series, offering one of the better casts that I've had the pleasure to meet. I place this one above the others because I feel it offers the best balance in its gameplay and has one of my favorite characters as the lead, Maya Amano. Katsuya deserves a mention, too, for being so likeable when you get to know him.
15)
EarthBound The majority of this game's merits are related to its "modern" setting and its great sense of humor. It's one of the few games where I feel like I must talk with every NPC to know what they have to say and usually I'll be rewarded with a unique piece of dialogue that makes me smile. Even if the game's balance can be a bit odd in certain places at least it works at what it wants to do and some quirky enemies and attack descriptions are as funny as they can get.
16)
Dragon Quest VIII It was my first exposure to the world of Dragon Quest and for some reason I stopped playing it while I was exploring a cave full of moles. After finishing the fourth entry I decided to give it another opportunity and then it was when it finally clicked with me. Its big overworld is one of the most impressive things that I've ever seen, along with the aerial transportation, the multiple locations and the loooooong story. The biggest gripe I have is with the slower than usual battle system, and I don't know why as I endure FFIX's speed quite well.
17)
Chrono Cross This game has almost nothing to do with its predecessor, Chrono Trigger, apart from the story: The battle system is completely different, the tone too, there are only enough combo attacks to tick that box in the feature list and there are lots of characters without too many unique characteristics and it still manages to be a great game, I just had to convince myself that it wasn't going to be the Chrono Trigger 2 I wanted. The story is interesting even if it's a bit convoluted, the battle system is great in its own merits and discourages grinding. The only problems I see are how many playable characters seem pretty meh and those jerk humanoids and their superiority complex.
18)
Grandia 2 It refines the gameplay of the first and I'd say it has around the same quality but only one could get two points. The tone is definitely darker than the first and it has more fleshy dungeons, but apart from that there isn't a lot I can say without repeating things or talking about the plot.
19)
StarOcean: Till the End of Time Say what you want about plot twists or whatever, the fact is that I loved this game, its characters, the battle system and its length. As if the main story wasn't enough it has a very lengthy post-game with a good quantity of dungeons and extra bosses and the Battle Trophies are the cherry on the top to make this game one of the most time consuming RPGs I've played.
20)
Fire Emblem: Awakening The latest entry in the Fire Emblem series reintroduces a lot of stuff that makes it a different experience than your ordinary game in the series. I loved how developing the relationships between characters was more rewarding and the huge amount of optional content.
Unranked Honorable Mentions:
- Final Fantasy X-2 I feel bad for not giving points to this game but two Final Fantasy games in the list are enough. FFX-2 has one of the best battle systems in the series thanks to its quick pace and the return of the job system and the ability to switch between them while fighting some monsters. I even liked the story somewhat as lately the Final Fantasy characters seem to be in a constant state of depression. The only bad thing was how this game could have been called "MISSABLES, the Game", and how I couldn't enjoy it to the fullest until I bought a guide.
- Kingdom Hearts I suppose the mix of two famous worlds is neat but I've never been able to really like this game and I wish that would have been the case. I only wanted to say somewhere that even if it isn't my cup of tea many people can probably enjoy it and I feel like I should mention it somewhere in my list, even in the zero points zone.
- Diablo For some reason I haven't played many western RPGs but I liked this one a lot when I was younger. I still remember the many deaths the Butcher caused to me and how satisfactory was to finally kill it, the many floors of its dungeon and other things that make me want to finally give more time to the other games in the series.
- Mario & Luigi: Dream Team Bros. - It's the first Mario & Luigi game that I tried and I liked the core concept so I guess it's time to try the others and see if one of them can get some points the next time. The quantity of tutorials seemed a bit too much and I can't imagine replaying it anytime soon, but the overall experience was an enjoyable one though. The platformer elements were really nice but the time it took experimenting with them was almost the same as it took the game to explain them.
- Grandia III This game could be titled "Grandia 3 or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and love the Skip Scene Option". The battle system is the only selling point of this game, but what a point, as it refines and creates the best one in the series. The Aerial Attacks are a nice new mechanic and the enemies are more difficult and aggressive than in the other two mainline titles (I don't know about Xtreme but with that name it must be even more challenging!). This game is perfect for replays thanks to how little the story gets in the way of enjoying the dungeons and the monster murdering if you know how.
- Bravely Default I don't know what was happening in my head at the time of making this list and almost forgetting about this. I know the second "half" left a very bad impression in me but it really shouldn't tarnish all the other things that it does well like the customizable difficulty on the go, the battle system even if it has a couple of features that I'm not particularly a fan of or the magnificent soundtrack. Looking back at this game I can only hope that the sequel solves many of the obvious problems that it has and becomes an essential RPG the next time this is done.